Adding the option to view comments linearly by date would help a lot. Or highlight new comments since your last visit. Couple that with subscriptions that som

Adding the option to view comments linearly by date would help a lot. Or highlight new comments since your last visit. Couple that with subscriptions that someone else mentioned and you'd have a much easier time keeping discussions going past the front page. Effectively, HN needs some of the features that forums and bulletin boards have had for ages. There is a reason forums work so well for discussions.